After the second bottle shattered, silence filled the room. 🍾💥
Not angry silence.
Not awkward silence.
The kind of silence that arrives after truth.
When shouting has nothing left to say.
When two hearts finally drop their armor. 🛡️
Laddu inhaled slowly.
Deep. Heavy.
Then, without drama, he walked to the bed…
and lay down on his back, staring at the ceiling. 🛏️
He looked exhausted.
Not the tired of muscles.
But the tired of carrying guilt for too long.
Mochi frowned.
Mochi:
"What are you doing?"
Laddu lifted one hand and patted the space beside him.
Laddu:
"Sit here.
No shouting.
No bottles.
Just… sit."
She hesitated.
Her instincts screamed danger. ⚠️
Her heart whispered stay.
Slowly, she walked over and sat beside him.
For a while, they said nothing.
Just breathing.
Just existing. 🌬️
Then Laddu spoke, his voice quieter than it had been in months.
Laddu:
"Mochi…"
She turned her head slightly.
Mochi:
"…Yes?"
He swallowed, eyes still fixed on the ceiling.
Laddu:
"When we broke up…
I thought you'd be happier."
Her breath caught. 💔
He continued, voice cracking despite his control.
Laddu:
"I thought if I disappeared…
you'd finally meet someone better.
Smarter.
Calmer.
Stable."
His fingers clenched into the blanket.
Laddu:
"I thought I was the one ruining you."
Mochi slowly lay down too, turning toward him.
Their faces inches apart now.
Her voice came out like a whisper wrapped in truth.
Mochi:
"You didn't ruin me."
His eyes flickered.
She continued, stronger now.
Mochi:
"You made me brave.
You made me confident.
You made me feel alive."
His lips trembled.
She reached out and gently took his hand. 🤝
Mochi:
"I didn't break because you left…
I broke because you didn't let me fight for you."
Something shattered behind his eyes. 💥
Not glass.
Not anger.
Fear.
For the first time in months, Laddu showed no mask.
No jokes.
No flirting.
No sarcasm.
Just raw emotion.
Laddu (voice shaking):
"I missed you so much."
Mochi moved closer and rested her forehead against his.
Mochi:
"I missed you too, idiot."
He exhaled, like someone finally released from a cage. 🕊️
Carefully… hesitantly…
he slid an arm around her waist.
As if afraid she might vanish.
She didn't.
She curled closer instead.
Mochi (soft):
"Don't leave alone again."
Laddu:
"…I won't."
No kiss.
No rush.
No promises carved in stone.
Just warmth.
Just closeness.
Just two broken halves finally fitting again. 🧩
Eventually, they drifted into sleep.
Side by side.
For the first time in a long time…
Laddu slept peacefully. 🌌
NEXT MORNING — THE TABLE OF SUSPICION ☀️🍽️
The sun rose gently.
Mama unlocked the guest-room door early, quietly.
She didn't wake them.
By breakfast, the entire house had assembled:
Mama
Father
Grandma
Grandpa
Maya
Cousin
Candy
Jin
Bob
All whispering like detectives at a crime scene. 🕵️♀️
Cousin:
"So… did they survive?"
Maya:
"I heard crying. But I don't know whose."
Bob:
"I heard a bottle explode. Twice."
Jin:
"Statistically, the room should be on fire."
Candy tapped her spoon nervously. 🥄
Candy:
"Big brother… big sister… okay?"
Mama sipped her tea calmly. ☕
Smirked.
Mama:
"They're fine."
Grandma nodded proudly.
Grandma:
"She locked them in. Of course they're fine."
Father sighed.
Father:
"'Fine' is not the word I'd choose."
Then—
Footsteps.
Everyone turned.
Laddu walked in first.
Hair messy.
Nose bandage crooked.
Eyes calm… relaxed… human again.
And right behind him—
Mochi.
Hair messy.
Face calm.
Eyes soft.
They sat down next to each other.
Silence.
Everyone leaned forward.
Candy:
"BIG BROTHER!! BIG SISTER!! ARE YOU ALIVE?! 😭"
Maya:
"Did you fight?! Did you cry?! Did you—"
Cousin:
"—KISS?! 😳"
Both answered instantly.
Mochi:
"No."
Laddu:
"No."
Family:
"OHHHHHHH 👀🔥"
Mama smiled into her tea.
Mama:
"Breakfast?"
Laddu quietly slid the salt toward Mochi. 🧂
Mochi quietly pushed the napkin toward him. 🧻
Everyone saw it.
The softness.
The care.
The unspoken language.
They weren't back together…
But they weren't broken anymore.
Something had shifted. 🌱
Something had healed.
Something new had begun.
BREAKFAST CHAOS — ENTER LIE 🚪⚡
Peace lasted exactly three minutes.
The front door opened.
Lie stepped inside.
Perfect hair.
Perfect jacket.
Perfect posture.
His eyes locked onto Mochi and Laddu sitting together.
His voice cracked.
Lie:
"How DARE—?! YOU?! Sitting together?! After everything?!"
Everyone froze mid-bite. 🍚🥢
Laddu raised one eyebrow.
Mochi blinked.
Lie marched forward—
Then stopped.
A huge shadow fell over him.
A muscular shadow.
A violent shadow.
Barfi. 💪😈
Lie turned slowly.
Barfi leaned down, placed one heavy hand on Lie's shoulder, and whispered something into his ear.
No one heard the words.
But Lie's soul did.
His face drained of color. 😨
His breath hitched.
And then—
He ran.
Out the door.
So fast even Candy gasped.
Candy:
"Big sister's boyfriend run like cartoon!! 🏃💨"
Mochi:
"He is NOT my boyfriend."
THE RING RETURNS 💍
Barfi walked in calmly like he owned the house.
Barfi:
"Good morning, Mama."
Mama:
"Good morning, Barfi."
He placed something shiny on the table.
Mochi's ring.
Silence fell.
Barfi:
"Found this on your office desk.
You forgot it."
Laddu stared at the ring.
Mochi stared at Laddu.
Everyone stared at both.
Barfi clapped once.
Barfi:
"Good. Everything looks fine."
Then to Laddu:
Barfi:
"Don't go to office."
Laddu:
"…Why?"
Barfi:
"One month off."
Jin:
"WHO ordered that?!"
Barfi:
"I did."
Jin:
"…Right. One month off."
Even Grandpa saluted. 🫡
THE THREAT EXPLAINED 🍳🥚
Mama:
"Barfi… what did you say to Lie?"
Barfi shrugged casually.
Barfi:
"I told him I will make omelet from two eggs…
and make him eat it."
The table froze.
Maya dropped her chopsticks.
Cousin nearly fainted.
Father covered Candy's ears.
Mochi (whispering):
"…Two eggs?"
Barfi:
"He understood immediately."
He left calmly.
THE LAUGH RETURNS 😂
Jin:
"…Who was that?"
Laddu:
"My brother from another mother."
Grandpa burst out laughing.
Bob slapped the table.
Father laughed so hard he almost dropped his bowl.
Even Laddu smiled.
Mochi looked at him.
Her eyes softened.
A small smile appeared.
For the first time in a long time…
Breakfast felt like family again. 🏠❤️